Home by Suppertime
by John Reed
Summary: Continuation of "Vampires and Witches and Elena" and "The Replacement"
1. The Drive

The Drive

"Drama? With Stefan?" Damon asked as Elena sat next to him in the car.

"Yes."

"Tired of it?" he asked as he began the drive.

She glanced at him, but just nodded.

"You have a choice, you know. Probably a number of choices."

Elena kept looking straight ahead.

"You tell me it's an hour to pick up Isobel. You can talk to me if you want."

"I know." Elena said. She kept staring ahead.

"There's a lot to be said – by both of us," he prodded.

She did look at him now. But not for long.

"OK, I'll start. I've done a lot to you Elena that I need to apologize for."

"You've apologized."

Damon ignored that. "When I came here, it was all about destroying whatever Stefan wanted, or Mystic Falls itself, or both. You were caught up in that and I did and said things to you I shouldn't have. I am sorry about that."

"Anything you ever said or did that was a problem, you made up for long ago. It's history and we're past that. Lately, all you've done is help me. And trust me. And sometimes I have let you down, I have betrayed your trust. And it almost killed you."

"It didn't."

"No, but how can you keep trusting me?" She was looking at him now, leaving the road-watching to him.

"I don't have to – not right now. Now you are trusting me."

"Which makes it worse. I've let you down. Why do you still care? Why do you help me?"

"Because you need it. Because you asked me to. And you know how I feel about you."

"I need your trust, you trust me. I need protection, you protect me. I need help, you help me. I've done nothing for you."

"Except save my life several times. Keeping score?"

"Losing track of the score. Which is good. I'm getting way behind."

"And does Stefan know the score?"

Elena frowned at him. "Does Katherine?"

"How should I know? She only talks to you."

"Not about you. What did you do when she was pretending to be me?"

"What did Stefan do?"

"He's not sharing. Which makes me think the worst."

"I wouldn't worry. Katherine never liked him that much."

"But you, Damon. What did you do with her that you thought you were doing with me?"

"You've asked this before, Elena. Still not sharing."

"Damon," Elena said. "You said you're giving me a choice. How can I choose when you don't talk to me. Play your cards. Let's see what you've got."

Damon sighed. "I'll show you my cards if you show me yours. Deal?"

"Yeah. Deal."

"Katherine stays away from me for more than 100 years. When she comes back, it's all about you. It's as if she's saying 'I don't want Damon unless he is interested in someone else'. She's all I ever wanted, until you showed up."

"And…"

"I never claimed to be good, Elena. You may think I have changed, but I'll still kill if I have to, steal if I want to, lie if it get's me what I want."

"You don't lie to me."

"No, not to you. And you know just about everything I've ever done – I did it over and over."

"And it's done," Elena said. "You can't change it. You can choose your future. And you still haven't answered my question."

"I kissed her."

"Meaning you would have kissed me. That's not so bad – not that I'd let you get away with it."

"Meaning she did let me get away with it. This creature I've loved more than anything and hated more than anything wanted me to do it. And she got me to do that. And now I'm left with cryptic messages about deciding between you and her."

"And have you? Decided, I mean?"

"Only one of you is here. Have you decided?"

"I made my choice long ago. I decided to stay with this, with him, until I was sure what was there."

"That's history, Elena. The kind you said is behind us. I'm not the only one who can choose the future."

"Yeah. Some choices are hard. There she is." Elena pointed to Isobel who was waiting at the side of the road.

"Even hard choices have to be made," Damon said as he stopped.

"Hello Elena. Nice to see you again, Damon." Isobel said.

"I doubt that." Damon said.

"Is he back up to his full strength yet?" Isobel asked Elena. "I might be able to take him out if he's not behaving himself."

"Might be dangerous for you to try." Damon smirked.

"Oh stop. My best friend and my grandma are already ready to kill each other. I don't need my mother and my boy…my non-boyfriend to go at it."

Isobel was actually smiling now.

"Lets just get to work." Elena said. "Katherine said a delivery."

"Did you see her again?" Damon asked as he resumed driving.

"No – phone call."

"Can you call her back?"

"It wouldn't be her phone." Isobel answered for her. "It could have been the phone of her breakfast, someone she charmed, or had a tryst with."

Damon actually scowled.

"Oh, hit a nerve did I?" Isobel asked.

"Don't please." Elena interrupted. "Just tell me what she meant by 'delivery'."

Isobel responded by giving Elena a small blue box. Elena looked inside.

"Is that the ring she took from the vampire she killed …. " And then she gasped.

"Is that his finger?"

"Yes and yes. Katherine never gives a gift without sending a warning. You didn't see her take them?"

Elena closed the box and shook her head. "I was too busy looking away to see exactly what she did. But shouldn't she be doing this herself?"

"I was told you are to assume the Katherine persona."

"Oh great. Is this going to be my only job from now on?"

"I'm sure she's just trying out new ways to use her resources."

Elena laughed to herself. "I'm a resource now."

"It's not a bad thing to be, Elena. If you're dealing with Katherine, it's probably the least you want to be. You know you'll have to remove your necklace."

"Yeah. I've got find a better place to keep my vervain."

"We'll be right there with you." Damon said. "And I am back up to full strength. Nothing will hurt you."

"Agreed," Isobel said. "We won't let anything near you. It would be true if we were with Katherine anyway."

"She's doing whoever this is a favor." Elena said. "Surely he would be grateful, not attack."

Damon and Isobel looked at each other.

"Are you going to let her think that?" Damon finally asked Isobel.

Isobel sighed and spoke. "Elena, dealing with Katherine has a price. You know that. She does not do favors, she creates obligations. There is virtually no one wearing a ring like that that would not kill her, if they could, just to get rid of whatever price they have paid."

"You wear her necklace. Damon and Stefan wear her rings."

"OK, maybe there's three of us that wouldn't kill her if we could. And I'm not sure about Damon or Stefan."

"Do you think she would send me to someone who's dangerous?"

"I don't know what she would do." Isobel said. "Has she risked you before?"

"I don't think so. And she makes a big deal about keeping me safe."

"There is no one working for Katherine that is safe."

Elena shook her head. Damon and Isobel could tell that Elena was upset. She just stared at the box.

"It'll be OK Elena." Damon finally said.

"I can't believe I left it that way with Stefan. What if I don't come back? Will that be his last memory of me?"

"Don't worry. You're going back." Isobel said. "Katherine has always come back. And I don't think she has had to spill much blood to do it."


	2. The Delivery

The Delivery

"I have no idea what to expect. Did Katherine tell you anything?" Elena asked Isobel.

"Not really, but I've been with her on a couple of these. Pretty simple. You say something about how this is in exchange for a promise. When you're ready, give the box to me. You don't need to go near him."

"How can I say something about the promise when I don't know what it is he has promised?"

"You don't have to be specific. Something like 'remember your promise' should do. There's not much more to it than that."

Elena's curiosity got the best of her. "How does she contact you? In person?"

Isobel shook her head. "Mostly by phone. If I see her, I know something is wrong – she's upset."

"Can you contact her?"

Isobel studied Elena for a second before responding "If she thinks there's a reason, she'll give you a way. I wouldn't rush that. She'll have enough of your time – no need to give her any more."

They were approaching the location – sort of a farm house. No other homes nearby. There were woods and fields and water. Elena removed her necklace.

"We'll be on both sides of you then entire time." Isobel said. "No need to worry."

Damon was silent during most of this. Elena had to wonder why. Was he just putting his bad face on?

"It's different from when I pretended to be her with her there. She was right there when I needed it."

"We will be as well." Isobel said as the car stopped a few yards from them door. "I will pull a shade when we enter so the sun can come in. They will be expecting it. We will stand in the light to show that what we have works. Then you can talk to him and, when you are ready, give me the box to give him. He will put the ring on and enter the same pool of light – slowly, to test the ring. Then remind him of his promise and we will go."

Elena nodded her head. "I understand." She put on her best Katherine face and said "I'm ready."

They exited the car and went to the door. It opened before they knocked..

The door opened fully, something that Elena did not expect, so she was able to stay next to Damon and Isobel as they entered. Not much sunlight entered the room. All the windows had coverings or shades which were pulled close. Isobel stopped a few feet into the room.

Elena raised her chin and let her eyes scan the room. Four – probably all vampires. She hoped Isobel and Damon were enough.

She recalled what Katherine had told her last time – silence was not good.

"Isobel" she said, motioning with her head towards a window which she knew would allow the sun in. And it was large. She would feel safer when standing in the light.

Isobel walked to the window slowly, deliberately. She was staring at the vampire Elena thought was the one in charge and probably the recipient of the ring. She stood by the window briefly and when the vampires did not move, opened it.

It was all Elena could do to hold her position. She waited for Isobel to return to her side, then walked into the light at the same deliberate pace Isobel had used. She wanted to sigh when she entered the light, but knew she couldn't.

She stood looking at the main vampire for a few seconds. She decided to avoid his eyes so she looked at the box and held it up as she spoke.

"You know this comes with a promise. Do you swear to keep it?"

"I swear." He said.

She looked at Isobel. She cold tell she was ready for anything. "Isobel" she said as she handed the box over.

Isobel had take a few steps towards the vampire when he spoke. "I've heard rumors."

Elena said "Wait!". Isobel was still in the light. A head motion from Elena and she was back standing next to her.

"Rumors." Elena said to fill the silence.

"Rumors that Katherine has a double. A human who looks like her. How do I know you are Katherine?"

Elena knew the jig was up. What was Katherine thinking sending her here like this?

"Are you willing to take the risk?"

"Maybe." The vampire said

"Do you think it matters? If you are wrong, you will burn either way. I've changed my mind." Elena said as she took the box from Isobel. "You're not ready."

"And you're not Katherine" the vampire said as he ran past the light to block the door. Another vampire leapt at them. Suicidal or protected? Or maybe he thought he would just knock them out of the light and go through it without much damage.

Elena was instantly being carried in Damon's arms toward the window. He tried to turn around in the air and hit it with his back. He didn't quite make it, though he did get most of the impact. Elena felt some contact as the glass broke around her. Damon landed on his feet with Isobel right behind them. They moved away from the house into bright sunlight and examined Elena. Her eyes were closed, she was bleeding in several places on her arm and head.

Damon moved his head to where he could listen to her breathe. "She's breathing. We need to get out of here."

"Yeah" Isobel agreed as they turned toward their car. They turned just in time to see something roll underneath it. An explosion followed. It didn't look totaled, but they knew they would not be driving it out of there.

"We have hours before sunset." Isobel said. "They can't follow us until then."

Damon nodded, then looked at Elena again. "Do you have the ring?"

"No. Elena took it back. Doesn't she have it?"

They both looked. She didn't have it.

"OK, one of them can follow us." Damon said. "You need to take her and get as far away as possible. I'll stay here in case he comes out."

"No," Isobel argued. "You need to take her and go. I'll stay."

"Please, you. She'll be safer with you."

"Damon, you're not at full strength are you?"

He hesitated.

"This is Elena we're talking about." Isobel said. "Are you up to fighting him if he comes out?"

"No."

"Then take her as far away as fast as you can. Find someplace safe when you need to stop. I'll try to get in touch with Katherine."

"And call Stefan."

"I'm not sure Katherine wants that." Isobel said.

"I don't care. He should be able to come immediately. It's about time he started helping. With any luck, you can burn this place to the ground before sundown."

"OK, OK. Just get going. Do you have a cell?"

"Yeah." Damon said as he ran away from the house.

Isobel dialed the number which had called her earlier. It went to voicemail – not a surprise.

"This is Isobel. It went down bad. Elena is hurt and Damon is carrying her to safety. We need help immediately."

She tried the previous three numbers that Katherine had called from and repeated the message to the two that still worked.

Then she called Stefan.


	3. The Escape and the Kink

The Call

"What happened Isobel?" Stefan was pretty much yelling into the phone.

"You don't need to know that. You just need to come here right now."

"If you or Katherine put her in danger…"

Isobel cut him off. "You put her in danger every day. How often has she been caught between you and someone or something who is trying to get to you? Now get down here and help us keep her safe."

Isobel hung up. She looked over the house. At least a front and back door. She looked for a vantage point where she could see both and she found it. She went to a nearby hill, sat down and stared at the house wondering how she could bring it down by sunset.

The Cards

Damon had been running inside a shallow stream trying to minimize the trail he was leaving behind. He knew it might not work for long, or at all, but it was something he could do.

Elena was still not moving, but she was still breathing. He moved to the bank of the stream and carefully laid her down. The cuts were still bleeding a little, but did not look serious.

He ignored the draw of the blood and removed his shirt, tearing it into several strips. He wet one and cleaned up as much of the blood as he could before tying two dry strips around her arm to cover the cuts there. Her head was still bleeding as well. He was dabbing the wound with the wet strip when Elena opened her eyes.

"Damon?" was all she could muster at first. Then feeling a throbbing in her head, she moved her palm up to rub it and felt the blood.

"What happened" she asked as he pulled her hand away and continue dabbing at the wound.

"What do you remember?" Damon asked, deciding it was a clean as it was to get. He took the remained strips, made a pad out of one, placed it over the wound and tied it in place with the other.

"Standing in the light, something about rumors, vampire jumping at us," Elena said.

"That's about right. Can you sit up?" he asked, offering his hand.

"Don't know," she said, trying to push herself up with her hands, ignoring his. After a second she shook her head.

"Let me help," he said, his had still extended.

She accepted and he pulled her into a sitting position.

"I'm sorry about the blood," Elena said. "Was it hard for you?"

Damon nodded.

"Where did I get these cuts?"

"You….we went through a window to escape."

She nodded. "Isobel?"

"She followed us through the window."

"But now – where is she now?"

"She's back at the house."

Elena was stunned. "No! Why?"

"She's in the sunlight. She wants to make sure no one follows us."

"How could they, we didn't give them the ring."

"We lost the ring. We think it was dropped inside."

Elena shook her head. "You mean you think I dropped it inside. How could I have been so stupid."

"Elena, it wasn't your fault. I had to get you out of there immediately, and it was a messy exit. Live first, clean up the mess later."

"What will Katherine do when she knows I've lost her ring."

"Let's just live long enough to find out. Can you stand?"

Elena held out her hand. Damon took it and slowly pulled her up. She hung on him for a minute but then regained enough strength to stand up on her own.

"I think so, she said," she said. "Getting stronger."

"Good. We need to go."

Elena held her had up. "Just give me a minute." Then she realized what had happened.

"Damon, you saved me. Thank you."

"Just trying to even the score."

Elena shook her head. "No, it's not that simple. Thank you for being there when I needed you."

"You're welcome. Lets get going."

"Not yet. I owe you an explanation. You told me how you feel, it's my turn."

"Now? Elena, this is not the time."

"Yes it is," she said. "Just give me a couple of minutes, I need to say some things I don't know if I'll be able to say later. OK?"

She looked at him earnestly. After a brief hesitation, he nodded.

She exhaled. "This is hard. I know you have feelings for me. You've told me so. And if I haven't told you before now, I have feelings for you. I have for some time. And I want to explore what we have, what we could have. I just can't do it right now. There's still too much to figure out with Stefan. There too much else going on right now like with Katherine."

She paused briefly to try to read his expression. She couldn't, so she forged on. "I know I have no right to ask this of you, that it is more that could be expected from anyone. But please, I need to know that you will continue to help me. I need to know that I can count on you when I need to. I need to know that your feelings for me will not change while I work this out. Damon, I need some time and I need to know that that will not affect us."

Damon suddenly felt a rush of adrenalin – or maybe it was anger. He picked her up and prepared to run, but before doing it, he spoke.

"Elena, you can count on my help. That won't change. But my feelings for you? How can they not change. They will change because of what you do."

And Damon started running.

Elena felt some relief at finally having just told him. But now she had one more worry – would she be able to choose before it was too late?

She put her arm around his neck, leaned her head against his shoulder, and let him carry her farther away from the farmhouse.

The Calvary

Stefan arrived slightly more than an hour after the phone call. Isobel was impressed. Damon said it had taken nearly two hours for his car to make the trip, but he was in no hurry.

"Where is she?" Stefan asked immediately.

"I don't know. I just know that she is with Damon."

"How could you not know?"

"Stefan! We need to make sure no one is following them."

"From here?" Stefan asked as he glanced around the house, noting the damaged car and the broken glass.

"Yes."

"Have you seen anyone come out."

"No, but we think one of them might have a ring for protection from the sun. I've been watching and I've seen no one come out."

"And does this house have an escape tunnel?"

Isobel did not understand. "A what?"

"A lot of old houses like this had an escape tunnel. They could have been used for a number of things when built, but vampires used them to come and go unseen by anyone around. I've lived in a few houses with them over the years. The tunnel would be from somewhere in the house to, say, someplace like those trees." Stefan pointed at the trees.

"I didn't know."

"Damon didn't mention this to you?"

"No, but he was busy trying to keep Elena alive. We both were. Would you go see if you can find one in those trees?

He left. He quickly called for Isobel to go to him.

"Here it is, and someone has left it recently. "

"I see," Isobel said.

"I'll go after them.."

"No!" Isobel said quickly. "I'll go after them."

"But if they're after Elena…"

"Stefan," Isobel argued, "You're not strong enough. Your diet – without human blood you wouldn't be able to protect her as well as me. You wouldn't be as fast as me. I'll find them. You stay here and find a way to burn this place to the ground."

"Burn? But what if people live here?"

"The only ones in that house are vampires that want to eat Elena. Find a way to get rid of them by sunset. And if Katherine comes, have her call me. I can use the GPS in my phone to let her know where I am."

And Isobel began to follow the trail of the vampire who had left the house.

"Katherine?" Stefan was left wondering as he turned back to the farmhouse.


	4. Seeking and Finding

Finding Elena

Bonnie was relaxing at home when she heard the knock on the door. She saw Elena on her doorstep and opened it immediately.

"Elena. Come on…" She was cut off by Katherine.

"I'm Katherine, Bonnie. And I need your help."

Bonnie took a step back in shock at what she had almost done. Then she realized who had stopped her.

"Why did you not let me finish?

"I told you I would only ask you to protect Elena. I will not attempt to enter your home unless provoked. But I need you to help me find Elena as soon as possible. She is in danger."

"You know she is in danger but don't know where she is?"

"I know the general direction, Bonnie. We need to leave immediately. Can you search for her while riding in our car?"

Bonnie nodded. "It would help if I had something of hers."

Katherine help up a shirt she had borrowed from Elena. Bonnie took it and went inside to get a few items which she brought out with the shirt. She followed Katherine to her car. There was a large man – probably a vampire – in the driver's seat.

Katherine sat in the front passenger seat. "I'll let you have the back. Is there enough room?"

"Yes." Bonnie said as she entered the car. "You know Elena will not like it if I am attacked."

"Yes I do," Katherine as the car started moving. "Anymore than I will like it if Elena is hurt because of any delay caused by you."

Bonnie looked into her cold eyes and nodded. She started her chants, thinking the car was traveling much too fast.

But Will he Do It?

Stefan was alert. He briefly considered entering the tunnel and going to the house to verify what he had been told by Isobel. He quickly discarded that idea. If he were to enter the house, it would be with as much sunlight as possible. Instead he blocked the tunnel with everything he could find. It was probably futile, but it would delay anyone else leaving that way. And it would tip him off because of the large amount of noise someone would have to make to leave the tunnel.

But burn the house down? What if there were people who lived there?

He sat where he had first seen Isobel. It was a good vantage point. Scanning the rest of the area, he saw a couple of small, detached buildings – one looked like a garage and one a storage shed. If he was really going to do it, he could probably find something flammable in one of those. And there was the damaged car.

But before he would consider this, he had to be sure. He went next to the house, and walked around the house slowly, concentrating on any sound he heard from the inside.

What little he did hear convinced him that Isobel was right. There would be a lot more noise coming from humans.

He was now officially on board. He began to look for flammable material to put around the house.

Quiet Time

Damon had stopped again. He hadn't spoken to Elena in what seemed like forever, and she was not sure what to do. She knew she would not be able to stand it if this was the way it would be between them.

She was standing next to a tree, but not leaning against it. She was getting stronger. She had only tried standing, not walking. So she tried that for a little bit. It was not terrible.

Damon was back-tracking a little. He did this from time to time. When he was speaking to her, he had told Elena that he was trying to obscure the trail he was leaving behind – even though it wouldn't work very well. It was difficult, very difficult to hide one vampire's trail from another. But he would do what he could.

Mostly they were just moving away from the farmhouse – in one direction or another. Elena had no idea where it was in relation to them. She did not know how far or what direction.

She did know that Damon was doing everything in his power to get her away from the danger. He was doing everything he could to protect her. She had only told him the truth. It was what he had demanded, and what he deserved. But seeing his reaction, and feeling what she was about his reaction, she was wondering if what she had said really was the truth. She was starting to doubt herself. Had she been telling herself she needed to figure out things with Stefan just to convince herself? What had she not figured out by now?

All Damon had ever done lately was help her. Her never questioned her actions or her motives. He never mentioned disapproval of her pledge to Katherine as Stefan had, he just helped her when asked.. She had ignored Damon's calls before. Stefan had ignored her calls at times. But Damon always took her call.

She had come to completely trust him. She recalled that when she had faced him in the past, he always had perfect control around her. When she was bleeding and hitting him, he stood there and took it. Then he convinced her to leave because it was too dangerous for her to be near him under the circumstances. Stefan drank some of her blood and totally lost control of himself.

Maybe she had spoken too quickly. Maybe…

He was back and she was in his arms again, moving.

"Damon, please talk to me."

He didn't. He just kept running.

The Trail

Isobel was hopeful. She was able to follow the vampire's trail without difficulty, which meant she could use all the speed she had.

And she wasn't seeing much of Damon's trail. This was good. She knew that the hostile vampire would not be covering it up. Damon was hiding it and doing it effectively. The other vampire would have to look for and find it. It would slow him down, giving her time to catch up.

She only wished she know how much of a head start he had.

The Finding

"Got her." Bonnie said. "Go South."

The driver made a completely unsafe u-turn, even leaving the road briefly, to return to where he could go south.

"How far?" Katherine asked.

"I can't be sure – not too close. A few miles, maybe. But we're going fast enough to cover them quickly."

"Can you tell how long before we have to leave the road?"

"No. I don't know where the roads are. I can only see as the crow flies."

"OK." Katherine said. "get us a close as you can. When it seems we are going away from her, we'll go on foot. Please follow us and keep her in your sights. If she moves, you need to let me know. We're faster than you and may be very far from where you are, but I'll be able to hear you."

Bonnie nodded and returned to her spells.

Hunted Down 

Damon put Elena down again. She figured he was going to back-track again. She grabbed his arm as he turned from her.

"No, Damon. Not until you say something to me. Anything."

"He's getting close." Damon said, but he did not try to get out of her grasp.

"I'm sorry, Damon. I'm sorry if I said something that hurt you. That is something I never, ever want to do. Please. Just tell me what you want from me. Anything."

Damon shook his head. This was not the time or place. Only Elena would think it more important to talk than to get away from a vampire trying to kill her.

It seemed the only way out was to give her what she wanted.

"I want a chance with you. A real chance where you are talking to me, thinking about me. Not thinking about Stefan or anyone else. Not spending your time with him or worrying what he will think of you if you do this or that. I want a chance where you only consider me. An up or down vote on just me."

"OK. I understand. How can I show you that it is happening."

"I don't know. Figure out a way."

Elena looked at him and decided. She put her hands around his neck, pulled his head down and kissed him. He was not resisting.

But suddenly she was pushed aside – roughly.

"What have I done?" She thought to herself as she tried to recover from her stumble. She turned to look at his expression. But he was not there. She heard a collision and followed the noise.

They had been found. Damon and the other vampire had collided to start the battle.


	5. The Parties and the Deciders

The First Rescue Party

Katherine and the other vampire were running – they were well out of Bonnie's sight. She was going to ask Katherine to have one of them carry her – she thought she might be of some use, if she could get close enough.

She ended up not asking – Elena needed someone with her as soon as possible. And it was a long shot anyway. So she followed them as fast as she could while trying to keep her sense of where Elena was.

She was also thinking that maybe she could try something from where she was. She could use her power very effectively at close range against specific vampires. Could she figure out a way to do it from a distance?

* * *

The Demoliton Party

Stefan had done it. The house was burning. He found it a little shocking – what he had become. Not that he had never done this kind of thing before. He had, but certainly not since he had found Elena. Would she approve?

He got rid of that thought immediately, replacing it with what Isobel had told him. The house only held vampires trying to hurt Elena.

Stefan thought the fire would not spread – he had been careful. His car was moved to a safe location, he had even soaked a couple places with water that looked risky before starting the fire. And it seemed to be behaving.

He would notify authorities before leaving, but first he had to decide what to do about the tunnel. It was blocked but not well. He did not know if it would burn – probably not. He had found explosives in the shed, so he was going to try to use them take the tunnel out or at least permanently seal it up. The explosives were in place. He had already done so much damage, this should be easy for him to do. For some reason, it wasn't. He knew what Isobel had said, but he could never be sure. Could he remove the vampires' last escape?

* * *

The Second Rescue Party

Elena had to do something. Damon was barely holding the other vampire off – if he was doing that much. From time to time, Damon seemed to have been beat, and the other vampire would turn towards her. But he never got very close to her before Damon was back.

She didn't know if he could keep it up. She needed a way to help. She looked for something she could at least make a stake out of, but everything she saw looked either so small that she thought it would cause no damage, or so large that she would never be able to break it to try to create a point.

She finally decided on a smaller large branch. She found a place where she could lean it at a 45 degree angle and jumped on it with her full body weight. It broke. The result wasn't pretty, but it was something she could hold, and if she should get it in the right place with enough force, she thought she could do some damage.

She turned back to the noises of the fight. She thought about trying to go behind the other vampire, but if he saw her and attacked, would Damon be able to recover in time to help her? Could she put him in that position?

She decided instead to try to get behind Damon. Maybe she could pass him her stake or find another way to help.

But as she turned to him, she could see it was getting worse. He was taking a beating. Not that he was down and out or anything, he was still up fighting. But he was slow, and did not look good.

That made the decision for her. She tried to find a way to get behind the other vampire without being seen. And she did, at least she hoped she did. He could have just been ignoring her.

She raised her stake and began to charge forward. Suddenly she was pushed aside and the stake was out of her hand. Maybe he hadn't been ignoring her.

Then she saw Isobel shoving the stake into the vampire's back. It had the desired effect. He struggled against the stake and her, but eventually fell to the ground.

Elena was quickly at Damon's side. He was standing and apparently resting. There were blood and bruises, but she thought he had never looked so good. She was deciding whether to try to comfort him with her touch when he darted another direction. She turned and saw he was headed for another vampire.

Isobel was faster. She managed to catch and hold him. "He's one of Katherine's Damon. Settle down. You need to rest."

Katherine did appear next to the other vampire. Only then did Damon relax. Without speaking to any of them, he walked to some nearby running water and started to clean the blood and other mess off of himself.

Katherine walked towards Isobel, who had moved back to watch the staked vampire. Katherine found his finger and pulled the ring off, inserting it into one of her pockets. Since they were in direct sunlight, the vampire was soon gone.

"Give me a minute with Elena," Katherine said to Isobel who nodded in response and turned to watch them.

Elena had not moved, she may not even have seen Katherine remove the ring. She was just staring at Damon.

Katherine stood next to her and looked at Damon as well. "He'll be fine," Katherine said, "it looks like you managed to get into his shirt, though."

That made Elena smile. She had completely forgotten the bandages she was wearing were his shirt. She turned to look at Katherine. It still creeped her out with the mirror image. She thought she might get used to it, but not yet. How did twins deal?

"Sorry about all of this," Elena said. She wasn't sure why, maybe just being polite.

"You know it was my mistake," Katherine said. "You are still new to me. I need to think about precautions with you more than I do with anybody else I work with. I overestimated his loyalty and underestimated the protection I needed to provide to you. You look like you feel good. Do you?"

"I do. A little sore where the bandage is on my head is all."

Katherine nodded. "I hope I haven't lost your trust in me. Your safety has always been my greatest concern. I will not let you down again."

"You didn't let me down. I was in good hands. It all worked out." Elena said.

"Do you know why they attacked you?"

"He said something about hearing rumors that you had a human double. I guess he suspected me from the beginning."

"Rumors." Katherine said as she turned back to look at Damon. Then she smirked. "Now that he's cleaned up, I'm kind of glad you took his shirt."

She turned back to Elena just in time to see a bit of a shocked face. "You've done as I asked. Anyone who threatened you will be destroyed."

"Already done," came a voice from behind them. Bonnie was there. "Stefan called, he said he burned the house down with the vampires in it. He's on his way here now."

"You look cheery," Elena said.

Bonnie hugged her. "I am so glad to see you're OK. And anytime vampires kill each other is fine with me."

Elena pulled away from her and nodded her head towards Katherine then made a "shush" sign with her finger.

"No, it's fine." Katherine said. "Bonnie is just relieved that you are safe. We all are."

Damon was approaching now. The blood was gone, but there were still bruises and other marks.

Katherine nodded for Isobel to join them. She spoke to her and Damon "You've done all I could ask. You kept Elena safe. I am grateful,"

"And I am furious," Damon said. "She should never have been there. You can't risk her like that. She pledged to serve and protect you, not to be sacrificed by you."

"Damon," Elena began before being cut off by Katherine.

"No, Elena, he's right. I've told you and now I will tell Damon. It was my mistake. It will not happen again."

Stefan was approaching now. "Did I miss anything?" he asked as walked to Elena and hugged her. She returned his hug only slightly.

"Time to return." Katherine said. "Elena, do you want to go back with Stefan, or...?"

Stefan gave Katherine and then Elena a quizzical look. "Don't you?"

Elena nodded. "Yes, but go ahead a little. I need to ask Katherine something in private."

He gave her a look but turned and started to walk away.

Elena looked at Damon with pleading eyes. She whispered, afraid Stefan might hear. "I have to, at least this time. Please."

Bonnie was staring, as were the others, no clue as to what was happening.

Damon spoke softly in response. "You know what I need, Elena. You'll either give it to me or not."

"I will, Damon. You have all the time there is. Please just give me a little."

Damon nodded. "I do have all the time there is. I just don't know how much time you have."

Katherine spoke now. "Would you like to go back with Elena and Stefan, Bonnie?"

"Yeah," Bonnie said pulling Elena away from Damon's eyes and starting to follow Stefan.

"And you could come back with me…if you want." Katherine said to Damon.

Elena heard. I was the last few words that caught her attention. She had never heard Katherine use that tone with anyone. She turned around to try to see his response, but Katherine was talking to Isobel. She had missed Damon's nod of agreement.

Bonnie pulled her towards the waiting Stefan again. Stefan misread her expression, and tried to comfort her. "Its over Elena, and its still early. We'll be home by suppertime."

* * *

The Deciders

Katherine had sent Isobel and the other vampire back with her car, telling them she would meet them in Mystic Falls. She and Damon watched as Elena left with Stefan and Bonnie. Elena occasionally looked back at them.

"You're going to get her to choose you," Katherine said. "And then the old Damon would break her heart - among other things."

Damon looked at Katherine now. "And you're going to get me to choose you. And will you then break my heart? Is that who you are now? You knew where I was for 145 years and you avoided me."

"No, Damon, I was not avoiding you – at least not for all of it. For some of it I was deciding."

"Deciding what?"

"Deciding about you."

"You were deciding about me without me there?"

"Sometimes the person you are thinking about is too distracting for you to make a good decision. Sometimes you need to be alone to decide."

"And what was your decision?" Damon asked, though he thought he knew.

"I'm here. My decision is made. You need to make yours."

"Yeah. Though I'm told I have all the time there is. You gave your car to Isobel. Mine was burned. We don't have a car do we?"

"We can get one if you want, Damon. It depends on if you want us to get back to Mystic Falls quickly, or if you are willing for us to take our time."


	6. Epilogue  Waiting Too Long

Epilogue – Waiting Too Long

Elena was upset – and she had no one to talk to. She hadn't said anything that should have upset him, but Stefan had reverted to brooding insecurity. Had Bonnie said something to him? Surely she wouldn't.

She heard a knock on the door and she was up - headed downstairs - in an instant. But would Katherine or Damon knock?

Jenna had just opened the door.

"May I see Elena?"

"Of course. Come on …" Jenna started.

"No!" Elena yelled as she reached the door. "Jenna, we'll just talk on the porch."

"Don't be ridiculous." Jenna said. She began again "Come …"

"On the porch!" Elena said forcefully.

"It's OK. The porch is fine," the visitor said.

"All right, can I get you anything … ?" Jenna asked, waiting for the blank to be filled in.

"Isobel. And no thank you. I'm fine."

"Well OK, let me know if you change your mind," Jenna said as she closed the door.

Isobel nodded to Jenna as the door was closing and Elena was sitting down.

"Really, Elena. Your life has been in my hands more than once. Have I ever let you down?" Isobel asked.

"No. I have come to trust you with my life. But you did say you would kill Jeremy. And I believe you."

Isobel was wearing a fairly distant face – not pure ice, but nowhere near warm. "Well, I don't know you as well as Katherine. Perhaps she is right. Perhaps you are much smarter than her average assistant."

"You haven't seen her or heard from her or Damon?"

Isobel shook her head.

"It's been 30 hours. They could have easily made it back, even if it was on foot."

Isobel nodded. "You could have made it back by now, even on foot - if that was your intention."

"What have I done?" Elena muttered under her breath.

"What happened with you and Damon. What's going on?"

"Apparently nothing."

"There's something going on between Katherine and Damon. Did you see how they acted before we were invited to leave?"

"Yeah, I saw," Elena said.

"And now you have the Salvatore you want – or at least say you want." Isobel's expression had softened ever so slightly.

"I just wish they would come back. I'm worried about them." Elena was looking down now.

"No need." Katherine said as she entered the porch. "We're fine." Damon was with her. Elena noted, to her horror, that they were walking hand in hand.

"I thought I might find you here, Isobel. Need a ride?" Katherine asked.

"Please." Isobel said, starting to leave with Katherine.

"Wait," Elena said to Katherine as she was turning around. She had dropped Damon's hand – it seemed he was remaining. "Can I ask you something?"

"Of course," Katherine said, turning back. "What do you need?"

"I need a way to be able to contact you. I've been thinking, and I know it could be abused, but I promise I won't. I would only use it for emergencies."

"You're smart, Elena. Innovative, self-reliant. It almost feels like you don't trust me now. And I can see why. Very well. I will provide you with a phone, and I will expect it to be used as you state."

"It will. I promise." Elena said.

"And I will also ask a favor of you, Elena."

Of course she would. "Ask away."

"I must insist you accept some additional protection."

"I told you what you did for me was fine. Here I am, so it must have worked out." Elena said.

"Here you are because I happened to send the only two with you who would go to such extraordinary lengths to save you. I will not always have that option." Katherine shook her head. "Next time you'll be lucky if you're not surrounded by a legion of vampires. But it is not just when you work for me. You are in danger here as well."

"I told you Damon, Stefan, Bonnie and Mr. Salzman are enough."

"You did. But you must give a little on this. Protection will be near, but unseen. Nothing dangerous will ever approach you again."

"They'll need to feed. Please Katherine, reconsider."

"There will be rules, Elena."

"Vampire rules."

"Yes, Elena. Vampire rules. The rules you are playing by now. I must insist on this. You will get your phone and your unseen protection. Your life needn't change."

Elena looked defeated. After all she had lost the last couple of days, now this.

Katherine added. "We'll do it for a week or two and then reconsider. If it interferes with you, we might change things up a bit."

"OK."

Katherine left with a "Later Damon." Elena realized he had not moved or spoken.

She looked at him. "Are you talking to me?"

Damon nodded. "If you're talking to me. But tomorrow. I have a lot to process right now."

Elena nodded and watched Damon leave, wondering if she had waited too long to choose.

-The End-

(Who am I kidding. It comes when it comes. When it comes, I will share. But it will be slower, I will not be so neglectful. But I am nowhere near done playing – I like Elena & Damon & Katherine - my Katherine - way too much. Come along if you dare, or wish or whatever…)


End file.
